Reviews
The Soul of the Congo – Treasures of the Ngoma Label (1948-1963)
In the last ten years, Belgian record label Planet Ilunga has been on a mission to share a remarkable treasure...
Reviewed by Lucy Hallam in issue: January/February/2024
Next Spring
This meeting of the ud, ney and kora is contemplative and exploratory – an experiment in their shared sensibilities and...
Reviewed by Olivia Haughton in issue: Apr/May/2015
Azaadi: Freedom
Samia Malik's album is autobiographical, bringing out the personal from the political via a series of original English and Urdu...
Reviewed by Amardeep Dhillon in issue: October/2017
Live in Dublin
It pains me to give this only four stars. As with any live recording, this is essentially a collection of...
Reviewed by Alexandra Petropoulos in issue: August/2024
El Carretero
It's not often that an album comes along with an opening track so compelling it begs several listens before you...
Reviewed by Jane Cornwell in issue: December/2019
Serenin: From the Black Sea to the Ligurian Sea
Despite appearances this is not a generic fusion but a bridge between specific traditions soundly based on historical and environmental...
Reviewed by Francesco Martinelli in issue: April/2021
Pajavasara
We all have days when we believe we can split rocks and are immortal (don’t we?). If so, look no...
Reviewed by Fiona Talkington in issue: July/2021
Ten Shades of Blues
Indigenous singer-songwriter Kev Starkey has seen a bit of life. Of mixed heritage – partly Adnyamathanha (Flinders Ranges in South...
Reviewed by Seth Jordan in issue: November/2016
Afrotropism
Although Danish seven-piece The Kutimangoes originally aimed for the crossroads between Afrobeat and jazz, further musical adventures have edged their...
Reviewed by Jim Hickson in issue: December/2019
One Night on Earth: Music From the Strings of Mali
Years in development, this fine recording is the result of white South African musician Derek Gripper having transposed seven kora...
Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: Apr/May/2013
